Wrapping up July.

I can’t believe the kids only have two more weeks of ferien.  Meaning, they go back to school SOON!  With our Barcelona trip during their spring break, and then taking some days off of school for Italy, this summer has been a stay-at-home and chill kind of time.  Which is nice.  Here are some random pictures, since Brett finally got some off his phone.

Here’s Hazel and the girls in primary.  With sunflowers on their heads.

Hazel and her friend Dinah found that they have the same dress, just in different colors and were so excited.  (Which is why we HAD to take pictures that day.)

 

Here we are at a geocache from quite a while ago.  I just LOOOVE Orrin.  Ha haaa.

I love how whenever we’re outside if Hazel finds a feather, she puts it in her hair.  Awesome.

 

A night when Orrin was just laughing and laughing and laughing at splashing Brett.

Driving his tractor, complete with tractor noises.  (Which reminds me of a story- we have a little board book about tractors and we were showing Talmage how the green ones are called John Deeres, and the other day we were walking past the farm and he saw the tractor parked and said, “Look, a Deer John.” Quite funny.)

We have been having quite the cold summer, with lots of rain.  But at least that means lots of rainbows.  (And yes, rainbows are one of those things where even though I’ve taken many pictures of rainbows before, I still have to run and grab the camera to take yet another.)  I think these rainbows were on the same day—it would rain and then stop and make a rainbow, and then have a blue sky for a while, and then thunder and pour again, and on and on.

But, finally this week we got a little hot weather.  So I took the kids to the lake one day and we had a great time.  Sometimes I feel like everybody’s eyes are on me because I have so many kids (for here, anyway). 

Yesterday Hazel started reading Caddie Woodlawn, and Caddie has red hair and it kindof makes a big deal of it in the book and describes how her hair is golden red and her brothers are darker/lighter/whatever, and the Indians like her hair, etc.  Anyway, so at lunch time she told us about Caddie’s hair, and then she said, “Mom, I think your hair is dark red like an apple, and Ethne’s hair is the most golden red, and Jethro’s is almost just plain golden.”  And then she said to me, “What color is my hair?”  And I said, “…Brown.”  And she said, “Hmmph,” and was all disgruntled.  So funny.

What else have we done?  The kids have played with neighbor friends, I read Hunger Games, oh yeah- we picked raspberries yesterday morning.  I was pretty impressed with how well the kids did picking since the berries are pretty small and in lots of brambles and stinging nettle.  And, I’m so proud of myself—I actually did ART with the kids this morning.  Now, realize that for about every 100 times the kids ask me if they can paint, I say no 99 times.  But this morning we did an awesome painting project that turned out really cool and at the end of it, I was even looking forward to another cool art project.  Wonders never cease.  Thanks pinterest and amazing art teachers who have cool blogs.  I will post pictures for sure later. 

Jethro had his first piano lesson today.  A really talented lady in our ward, Miriam, is teaching him, and I’m really excited for him, because I think he’ll do really well and progress fast.  However, it wasn’t so cool when I loaded all the kids up and drove all the way to their house and no one answered the door and we tried calling, but to no avail.  After coming home, she called and asked where we were, and I guess they had been out in the garden or something, but anyway, it all worked out because they came over and picked him up and dropped him off again, along with lots of toblerone, as she is the Great Toblerone Supplier (I think she has a friend who works at the factory or something.  Anyhoo, we don’t have a piano or a keyboard yet, but we’re working on it.

If you want to know what’s really been on my mind lately, we found a house for rent that we fell in love with.  It’s a really old farmhouse, beautiful and with more space and out in the country and it has a garden with raspberry bushes and a gorgeous view.  We went and drove by the first night Brett saw the listing for it online, and then we went and met the lady who lives there now and saw the inside a week later.  I made all the kids get nice clothes on, and did everyone’s hair so we could make a good impression and Jethro was like, “Aren’t we going a little overboard dressing up?” and Brett and I are like, “No!”  Unfortunately, I don’t think we’ll get it, because we knew there were several other people interested, and the listing has been taken down now, and we haven’t heard from her.  But… I guess we haven’t heard a firm no yet either.

So.  What else should we make sure to do in the next two weeks before crazy school schedules reign supreme once again?